Category Archives: Places

Colorful Beaches

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A view of Green sand beach (Papakōlea) on the Big Island, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Beautiful Beaches.’ See more responses here. Obviously, this was a tricky challenge for me, but I have managed to come up with a few photos!

The top photo shows Green Sand Beach. It’s official name is Papakōlea Beach and the color of the beach is due to an abundance of olivine from the old volcanic cinder cone that borders the beach.

Next we have two black sand beaches. The best known black sand beach on the island is Punaluʻu Beach, which is often referred to simply as Black Sand Beach. However, there are several others. The first of these is Pololu Beach here in North Kohala. The black sand is a result of the breakdown of black lava into smaller pieces. Over time, the grains become as fine as those on white sand beaches.

A view of the black sand beach at Pololu on the Big Island, Hawaii

Pohoiki Beach is the newest such beach on the island, formed by the eruption of 2018. The grains are still a bit coarse, but it’s mind boggling to think that before that eruption, there was basically no beach here at all. Now, as the photo shows, it’s extensive.

A view of the black sand beach at Pohoiki on the Big Island, Hawaii

Finally, some white sand beaches. Anaeho’omalu Bay Beach, at the south end of Waikoloa Beach Resort, is a curve of sand dotted with palms, a quintessential tropical beach.

A view of Anaeho’omalu Bay on the South Kohala coast

Hapuna Beach, farther north, is a regular on lists of best beaches in the U.S.A..

A view of Hapuna beach on the Big Island, Hawaii

The beach at Spencer Beach Park is a current favorite of mine, a place I like to walk in the early morning before going to work. The sheltered waters, shade trees, and picnic areas make it a favorite with families.

A view of the beach at Spencer Beach Park on the Big Island, Hawaii

Brown Anole

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A brown anole on a wire in Hawaii
A brown anole on a post in Hawaii

I saw this anole down at Honokohau Harbor in Kailua Kona. It was asserting its rights to a patch of territory there, though it didn’t look particularly promising as far as harboring much in the way of food. It’s also an area that tends to be thick with house sparrows, hanging around to snag leftover French fries at the Harbor House restaurant, which is where these photos were taken from.

Flowers for King Kamehameha

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The statue of King Kamehameha in Kapaau, Hawaii, is decorated with leis on his birthday
The statue of King Kamehameha in Kapaau, Hawaii, is decorated with leis on his birthday

June 11 was King Kamehameha Day in Hawaii, celebrating the birthday of the king who first united the Hawaiian Islands under one rule. The day is marked by parades and ceremonies in several places, including here in North Kohala, which is where King Kamehameha was born. The past couple of years, the ceremonies didn’t take place because of Covid restrictions, so this year’s event was the first since then.

I was working on the day, but after work I stopped by to see his statue, which was draped in leis during the ceremonies. It seemed like there was even more floral decoration this year than in previous events, making for a colorful spectacle. But even more striking than the color was the wonderful aroma from the profusion of plumeria flowers in the leis.

The leis are left in place for two or three days before they’re removed. Even when I was there on the first day, some of the flowers were starting to wilt.